Sunday, January 20, 2013

Flock of Redpolls!

Red polls

I got to the park around 7:35 a.m. It was about 40 degrees, clear and a little windy, but nice.

I strolled around the lower gardens and didn't hear or see one bird! I couldn't believe it. I thought the milder weather would have brought the birds out. The upper gardens were dead quiet too. No signs of life - not even a robin or song sparrow present.

So, I decided to head down to the river, as that area was more active last weekend. When I got to the path by the soccer field, I finally saw a couple of robins and heard the little cheep, cheep of a couple of white throated sparrows foraging in the leaf litter. A group of chickadees appeared, and the male cardinal I've been seeing down there became evident.

Cardinal

I saw a group of birds in front of me and I thought at least I was going to see a few song sparrows, but the markings weren't right. Then I thought they must be house finches, but the breast was much clearer - the striations were mostly on the sides. When they realized I was there, the whole flock few to the side of the pond on a white birch tree branch. As I focused in, I realized I was looking at my first flock of redpolls (8 individuals)! Matt was right - they really like the catkins on the birch trees. I was so excited except they were too far away to photograph at all. Eventually, they came back to the birch near the path and I was at least able to get something. The bird on the top left is showing a little of the distinctive red patch. Sure wish I had a better telephoto lens.

A couple of mourning doves flew overhead as well as several groups of vocal geese. A lone goldfinch was hanging out with the redpolls until a few friends joined in. A whitebreasted nuthatch scoured the bark of a large tree. On my way back to the car, I finally saw a couple of song sparrows. One does wonder where the birds are on a day like today. You know they're there somewhere.

1 comment:

I'm so glad that they are back and you got to see them! After finding them new years day, I was very interested in seeing what a white birch catkin is. So next time I walked passed a tree with a catkin I could reach I decided to look closely. I was totally amazed out how small those seeds are, definitely smaller than a sesame seed. No wonder they are eating all the time.

Nahanton Park

Nahanton Park is a very special wildlife area. In a relatively small space, there are several different habitats - the river, a pond, woods, meadow and gardens. These all contribute to the unusual and diverse wildlife one is able to experience on a daily basis at the park.

Please join me in posting your sightings, photos, news or thoughts. Let me know in the comments section and though new to me, we'll figure out how to set you up.